Yesterday was a crucial election for the future of public schools in Texas. The Republican primaries pitted civic-minded Republicans against challengers committed to vouchers and endorsed by Governor Greg Abbott.
Abbott received the biggest single contribution in state history from Pennsylvania billionaire Jeff Yass. The gift came with a purpose: pass a voucher law.
Governor Abbott has been in charge since 2015 and until now, he never cared much about vouchers. But the money came pouring in from evangelical oil-and-gas billionaires like Tim Dunn and Farris Wilks, as well as out-of-state billionaires like Yass and Betsy DeVos. Suddenly, vouchers was the Governor’s top priority. He toured Christian schools around the state to promote them.
When the vote came in the Legislature, a bloc of rural Republicans in the House opposed vouchers. They said their community loved their public schools; they didn’t want to undermine them. Their public schools are the heart of their community and their local economy.
Abbott offered new money for public schools and teacher pay raises, but only if the Legislature approved vouchers. The rural Republicans (and every Democrat) said no.
Abbott said he would call special sessions until the House passed a voucher bill and he did. He called four special sessions. They said no to vouchers. He threatened to run primaries against them and to replace them with legislators who supported vouchers. They stood firm.
Yesterday some of those rural Republicans were defeated by Abbott and about $100 million in billionaire money. Some prevailed. Some are in run-offs.
Pastor Charles Johnson of Pastors for Texas Children (PTC) is a stalwart friend of public schools. He and his network of pastors across the state understand the importance of well-funded public schools and well-paid teachers.
PTC just released this update on the Republican primaries.
https://www.pastorsfortexaschildren.com/
Election Results
Dear Friends,
We have mixed emotions as we reflect on last night’s outcomes of the Texas House of Representatives races. While we may not have achieved the sweeping results we had hoped for, we are grateful for the victories your work and witness achieved!
Of the 16 House Republican primary races we focused on, we enjoyed six victories and suffered six losses. Four of our Republican friends face runoff elections.
The path to positive change is often fraught with challenges, and setbacks are an inevitable part of any endeavor. Though we may not have won every race last night, we are grateful for the re-election of six of our strongest Republican allies in the House and look forward to working hard to re-elect four more in the runoffs.
We find hope and encouragement in the upcoming May runoffs. These runoffs are crucial to fighting taxpayer-funded vouchers here in Texas. We will continue to fight to ensure that the Texas Public Schools voice we advocate for is heard loud and clear. Your continued support is crucial, and together, we will forge a brighter future for the children of Texas.
We want to express our gratitude for your unwavering support throughout this journey. We remain steadfast in our commitment to championing our Texas public schools, teachers, parents, and, of course, the 5.5 million children in our Texas public schools.
Let us stand united, resilient in the face of these challenges, and hopeful for the positive outcomes that the runoffs may bring. The journey may be long, but with your dedication and support, we can make a lasting impact on the lives of children and families in our beloved community.
Rev. Charles Foster Johnson, Executive Director
Pastors for Children
Diane Ravitch's blog 
Many thanks to the Texas pastors for their tireless efforts on behalf of public education. Contrary to Abbott’s claims, vouchers do not “empower parents.” Most schools that accept low value vouchers are poor quality and much worse than public schools. Also, it is the schools that do the choosing. Private schools may discriminate and segregate with impunity. Vouchers transfer public funds into unaccountable private pockets and damage the public schools. The voucher winners are the affluent that drain money from public schools that working families need, and the wealthy get a subsidy for private schools they already can afford to pay for. This is why wealthy Republicans support vouchers so vehemently. They are a transfer of wealth from the working class to the affluent. It is unfortunate that some parts of the state are willing victims of wealthy Texans whose interests Abbott represents.
On an entirely different topic, I think it time for the International Criminal Court to indict the Israeli and Hamas leadership for terrorism, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. These people should spend the rest of their lives in prison. And the Israeli leadership should be forced by UN police to tour the hospitals full of little children with their legs and arms blown off, as Patton’s soldiers made Germans parade through Buchenwald. I have a few words for people who would perpetrate such crimes, but those are not suitable for Diane’s blog.
30,000 dead from the illegal Israeli attack on a civilian population. 16 children now dead from malnutrition. Lord only knows what the long-term cost will be in brain damage from extreme hunger. And, there’s a new UN report confirming the widespread rape that occurred as a part of the Hamas terrorist attack–the systematic rapes that Dienne77 and the propaganda sources she reads claim never occurred.
The leaders of Hamas who perpetrated the Re’im music festival attack and the leaders of Israel who perpetrated the ghastly response are quite literally mass murderers. They all need to be brought to justice before the International Court.
Agreed. What is especially maddening is that Netenyahu was warned about this more than a year in advance, but chose not to act to prevent the barbaric slaughter of Israelis and Palestinians alike.
The Nation has a good analysis of this: https://www.thenation.com/article/world/israel-gaza-intelligence-cyber-shield/